April 2012

Monthly Bulletin 35
Dear Members, Welcome to the April edition of the ecdp monthly email bulletin. This month we are working to understand how the views of health and social care users can best be captured so their experiences and views can be considered when decisions which will affect them are made. We are hoping many of our members will share their thoughts and contribute their voice to this important work. You can do this in two ways: The first is to complete ecdps short online survey, which takes just five minutes to complete: ecdp survey How to capture your views on health and social care The second is to attend one of four focus groups being held across the county. The first group is this Thursday 5 April, from 6pm-8.30pm at ecdps offices in Chelmsford. All attendees will be paid 20 for their time and we will cover reasonable travel expenses. A buffet will also be provided. Full information and a list of the other meeting dates are available in the article on page three. If you cant make it to a meeting, there are other
April 2012: Monthly Update 35

This update includes articles on the following topics:

ecdp news
1. Health and social care: effectively capturing your views and experiences Working with Skills for Care to give you the information you need as an employer ecdps CEO talks about Remploy on BBC Essex Fulfilling Potential: emerging themes published by the Government

2.

3. 4.

local news
5. 6. 7. ECC introduces Payment Card for Personal Budget Users Leap Against Stigma conference Fair Access to Colchester needs you!

Page 1 of 19

Monthly Bulletin 35 April 2012

ways to share your views, too:

8.

You can tweet us by sending us a message to @ecdp on Twitter You can share your views with us on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/essexcdp You can share your views on our website Forum: www.ecdp.org.uk/forum You are also welcome to share your views with us via email (send your thoughts to rwatts@ecdp.org.uk) or on the phone (call 01245 392 324).

Ability Action Southend: Positive about Disability Day

national news
9. Disability Rights UK Holiday guide for disabled people 10. Survey for Personal Assistants 11. Travel Support Card for people with hidden impairments

If youd like to ensure you receive information about the research work were doing, or if youd like to make sure your voice is heard, please contact: Rich Watts on rwatts@ecdp.co.uk or 01245 392 324. We very much hope you will consider taking part in this work, and hope to hear from you soon.
Best wishes, Rich Watts Director of Policy & Development

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 2 of 19

ecdp news

Health and social care: effectively capturing your views and experiences
ecdp has been asked by Essex County Council to find out how to best capture your views and experiences of the health and social care systems. This is to ensure that your views and experiences are reflected in the way decisions about health and social care in Essex are taken. We hope you will take this opportunity to have your voice heard and share your lived experiences in this work. Were very keen to ensure this work covers as many different groups of people across Essex. Over the next six weeks, we will be running meetings across different locations in Essex. This will be your chance to: Let us know why you might want to share your experiences to make the health and social care systems better Share with us the best ways for them to do this such as meetings, surveys, online, social media, drop-in sessions, focus groups etc. 6pm-8.30pm, Thursday 5 April, ecdp (Chelmsford) 11am-2pm, Tuesday 10 April, Tendring CVS (Tendring) 11am-2pm, Tuesday 17 April, Firstsite (Colchester) 11am-2pm, Thursday 3 May, ecdp (Chelmsford) If you can attend one of these meetings, we will be able to pay you for your time (20) and travel. If you would like to attend, please contact Faye on fsavage@ecdp.co.uk or 01245 214 023. There are lots of other ways to get involved, including through the online survey. For more information, please see the ecdp website: ecdp Health and social care: effectively capturing your views and experiences.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35

Page 3 of 19

ecdp news

Working with Skills for Care to give you the information you need as an employer
ecdp is delighted to be working with Skills for Care to support disabled people in Essex and beyond who employ their own staff to access Skills for Cares useful and time-saving resources. Skills for Care wants to ensure that the people who work for disabled and older people in providing care often paid for by Direct Payments or Personal Budgets have the right skills and qualifications to do so. We know Direct Payments can be a very beneficial way of arranging your social care. But we also understand that it can sometimes take time to get the right information to feel fully in control. This is why ecdp is working with Skills for Care to ensure their useful information is made as available as possible to you. We also want to make sure you have the opportunity to let Skills for Care know how useful their resources are: what is good, what can be improved, and what new things you might like to see. How we will do this Over the next four months, we will be telling you much more about the resources that Skills for Care have. We will be using our website (www.ecdp.org.uk), our monthly bulletin, our quarterly magazine and our social media (Twitter, Audioboo and YouTube) to keep you up-todate on the support available and how you can access it. We will also be holding three dedicated focus groups in April, May and June. This means you will have the chance in person to find out from Skills for Care about the work they do, and let them know how it could be improved. We are also keen to let you know about a very useful source of information that Skills for Care has developed: it is called a Social Care Data Set, and it can tell you the types of skills you can expect to
April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 4 of 19

ecdp news

find for carers in Essex, what types of qualifications they might have, and all sorts of other useful information you might need to help you make a good decision when looking for your next carer / Personal Assistant. Keep in touch If you would like to ensure you receive information about the work we are doing with Skills for Care, or if you would like to take part in the planned focus groups, please contact: Rich Watts on rwatts@ecdp.co.uk or 01245 392 324. We will be able to pay people for their time and travel in being involved in this work. You can find out more about Skills for Care and what they do here: Skills for Care. About ecdps payroll support service ecdp pass Our payroll service ecdp pass supports disabled and older people with employing Personal Assistants (PAs). ecdp pass provides a vital support system for people who want the independence that a Direct Payment / Personal Budget / cash payment can give them, but for whatever reason feel they need some support to do so. We have a personalised payroll service to meet users individual needs through offering as much of a tailored service as possible. This includes payment facilities, quarterly returns to Councils, staff recruitment and checking, and PA training. To find out more about ecdp pass please visit the ecdp website or contact them on 01245 392 320.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 5 of 19

ecdp news

ecdps CEO talks about Remploy on BBC Essex

Last month, ecdps CEO Mike Adams was invited onto BBC Essex to talk about the recent announcement concerning the proposed closure of Remploy. You can listen to the interview on BBC Essex here: Mike Adams on BBC Essex There were a number of key points that Mike made: We have sought to capture the views and lived experiences of disabled people locally to inform our views Older disabled people, whose experiences were in the main of segregated institutions, sometimes feel the dedicated workplaces approach was the best to take. But the next generations dont find it acceptable that they should be treated differently or separately, and want the same access to opportunities in employment, in education, in volunteering as non-disabled people We are reassured by the commitment that all of the money saved by changes to Remploy is being reinvested into Access to Work an employment support programme we know works This will ensure more disabled people get employment support: the cost to government for someone to work at Remploy is 25,000, whilst the cost of Access to Work is 2,900 per individual. Furthermore, this is good not only for the individual but good for the economy: for every 1 invested in Access to Work, it returns 1.48 in tax and National Insurance contributions We understand there is a significant package of support in place for people leaving Remploy. This will be for a transition period of 18 months and this support will be additional to existing work support programmes. Furthermore, people will be able to take this resource directly through a Direct Payment, rather than having to use predetermined support, so it will be personalised
April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 6 of 19

ecdp news

We hope user-led organisations like ecdp up and down the country will play their part in this transition We must remember that the recommendation about Remploy is just one part of a significant number of other reforms made by the Sayce review. We strongly encourage people to look at the whole report in the round, and not focus simply on Remploy

We feel it is important not to be making political points about the changes to Remploy. Governments have been looking closely at Remploy for a number of years for example, the most recent round of Remploy closures was in 2008 when 28 factories closed. ecdp responded in full to the Sayce review in October 2011. You can read our response here: ecdp response to the Sayce review Mike Adams was a member of the scrutiny group of the Sayce review, which meant he could share ecdp members views in the development of the review as well as afterwards.

ecdp membership Did you know that ecdp membership is free to disabled people who live or work in Essex? As well as this monthly update, you will receive a quarterly magazine and the opportunity to provide your lived experience to help shape our work. For more information, please contact using the details at the start of this bulletin.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 7 of 19

ecdp news

Fulfilling Potential: emerging themes published by the Government

At the beginning of March, ecdp submitted a response to the Governments engagement exercise to inform the new disability strategy. ecdp worked with disabled and older people from across Essex to produce the response, which you can read on our website in a number of formats: Fulfilling Potential - ecdp response The picture to the right is a graphick, drawn during a focus group of young disabled people and people with learning disabilities. The Fulfilling Potential exercise was covered by BBC radio 4, including interviews with ecdp members. You can watch a short video of our Chief Executive, Mike Adams, reflecting on Fulfilling Potential and the contribution of ecdp members on our website. Over 500 responses were received by the Government. Emerging themes have been published by the Office for Disability Issues (ODI) and were discussed at an event attended by disabled people, disabled peoples organisations, and officials from across Government on Thursday 22 March. You can read some emerging themes from the responses on the ODI website. If you would like any further information on Fulfilling Potential or you would like to share your thoughts, please contact Faye by email fsavage@ecdp.co.uk or phone 01245 214 023.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 8 of 19

local news

ECC introduce Payment Card for Personal Budget Users

Essex County Council (ECC) is launching a Payment Card as a new way for people to receive their Personal Budget. The aim of the card is to give people greater choice and control over their support and can be used in a number of ways to meet the needs agreed in their support plan. This might include paying a care agency or personal assistant, paying for leisure activities, support services or transport. The card is a Visa card with a chip and pin, much like a bank card. This means the card can be used to make payments using the chip and pin facility, over the internet and by phone; it can be used for oneoff or regular payments. However, there is no bank account and the card is pre-loaded with the amount ECC has agreed to pay each month in your Personal Budget, so you cannot spend any more than the agreed amount. A leaflet explaining the Payment Card and how it will work for users, is available to download as a PDF: Essex County Council - Payment Cards Leaflet. To share your thoughts on the payment cards, please contact ecdps Lived Experience Officer by email: fsavage@ecdp.co.uk or phone: 01245 214 023.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35

Page 9 of 19

local news

Leap Against Stigma Conference

North Essex Partnership Foundation Trust (NEPFT) is hosting a conference on Monday 14 May about tackling stigma related to mental health issues. The conference will include guest speakers from the Royal College of Psychiatrists. More information and a booking form are available to download from the ecdp website: ecdp Leap Against Stigma: booking form If you have any questions or require any further information, please contact Luisa Hart at NEPFT by phone: 01245 546 441 or email: luisa.hart@nepft.nhs.uk.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 10 of 19

local news

Fair Access to Colchester needs you!

Changes are being made to Colchester Town Centre which will include removing access to the central blue badge spaces on the High Street and Head Street between 10am - 6pm, and replacing them with existing spaces in the car parks surrounding the town, a great distance away. The Road Traffic Orders to make these changes have been published and 30 March is the deadline to respond to the formal consultation. Fair Access to Colchester is putting a response together to try and explain the impact the changes will have on people with disabilities/mobility issues, older people and carers. To do this we are undertaking a one-page survey, which you can use to share your views on the proposed changes You can access the survey here: Fair Access to Colchester survey Are you a person with a disability/mobility issue, or a carer? Fair Access to Colchester is looking for people with different impairments to undertake a more in-depth interview so we can explain the impact it will have on your ability to reach the town centre. People would include: People with chronic pain People with breathing difficulties People with a long-term condition People with a visual impairment Plus any other group it will impact upon. If you are interested in taking part, please contact Fair Access to Colchester: Fair Access to Colchester

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 11 of 19

local news
Respond to the consultation You can also respond to the consultation as individuals. The proposed Road Traffic Orders can be found here: Engage Essex You can respond to them here: TRO Comments, East Area Highways Office, 910 The Crescent, Colchester Business Park, Colchester, CO4 9QQ or email them to TRO-commentseastarea@essex.gov.uk.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 12 of 19

local news

Ability Action Southend: Positive about Disability Day

The event is between 10am-4pm on Friday 13 April in the Outpatients Area of Southend General Hospital. The day will include the following: Free information, advice and guidance Meet local disability activists Disability benefits entitlement advice Tell us your views on Hospital Services and disability access A chance to ask questions Light refreshments available

You can find out more about the day via Ability Action Southends Facebook page: Ability Action Southend on Facebook.

Find ecdp online For up-to-date news on the work we are doing at ecdp, find us online
Our website: www.ecdp.co.uk Our Facebook page: http://on.fb.me/ecdpfacebook Our Twitter page: http://twitter.com/ecdp

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 13 of 19

national news

Disability Rights UK - Holiday guide for disabled people

Disability Rights UK have published their Holiday Guide for disabled people looking for a break in the British Isles. Since Disability Rights UK (formerly Radar) started producing a holiday guide over 30 years ago, there have been substantial improvements in the regulations and legislation affecting the provision of accessible accommodation and the other services needed by disabled guests. There are many people within the tourist industry who have a real interest in catering for disabled guests and this number is growing all the time. Written by and for disabled people, this is an essential read for you and the people who support you to help find out more about accessible and inclusive holiday experiences. Whether it is a day trip out or an adventure holiday, you can use this guide as a support tool and resource to help plan your time away. Disability Rights UK compiled this Guide to help you prepare for a holiday and find the information you might need to make sure that your destination and accommodation is suitable. The Guide is divided into two parts; the first provides general and practical advice and guidance to help you organise your trip and includes a list of organisations and resources you may find useful. The second half of the book offers you an armchair tour around the British Isles, to help you decide where you might want to go and let you know about some of the local resources available to you in each region. Visit the Disability Rights UK website to order a copy or download a PDF version of the guide, here: Disability Rights UK - Holidays in the British Isles 2012.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35

Page 14 of 19

national news

Survey for Personal Assistants

The size and structure of the adult social care sector and workforce in England is a report produced by Skills for Care on an annual basis and aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the adult social care sector and workforce. The information in this report will be of interest to a wide variety of stakeholders, including Local Authorities, Central Government and Adult Social Care Employers. As part of this report Skills for Care require an estimate of the number of jobs carried out by people in personal assistant roles. National Minimum Data Set for Social Care (NMDS-SC) data is used for the majority of the report however coverage of people who employ their own care and support staff (through direct payment or other means) is still relatively low and therefore cannot be used to accurately produce these estimates. Therefore, Skills for Care are running a survey to gain an understanding of how many jobs personal assistants have. The questionnaire is designed for personal assistants to complete and should only take a few minutes. All responses will be completely anonymous and we will not ask for names or contact details of respondents. This information will be used by Skills for Care to estimate the number of people that have more than one job in the adult social care sector. It will not be used for any other purposes. The survey is available here: Personal Assistants - Multiple Job Survey. The survey should be completed by 5pm on Friday 4 May 2012.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 15 of 19

national news

Travel Support Card for people with hidden impairments

Transport for London (TfL) have launched a travel support card, designed to make it easier to get help from staff on buses, the DLR, London Overground and the Tube. You can show the card to staff when you ask them for help or if you have a problem while you are travelling. It is for anybody who has a hidden impairment, but may be particularly helpful for people with learning difficulties. There is a blank space inside the card where you can write down information about your journey and the type of help you may need. You can download a printable version of the travel support card or you can order the card by contacting London Travel Information on 0843 222 1234. A short guide to using your Travel Support Card is available here: How to use your travel support card.

London Transport Accessibility Transport for London (TfL) has produced a report providing details on how the Mayors Transport Strategy (MTS) Accessibility Plan will be taken forward. Publication of the report follows a four month period of public consultation in summer/autumn 2011. The report is available in a number of formats on the TfL website: TfL Transport System Accessibility

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 16 of 19

national news

Hate crime action plan: Challenge it, Report it, Stop it

The Home Office has published Challenge it, Report it, Stop it, the governments blueprint to tackle hate crime. It aims to bring together activity by a wide range of government departments - working with local agencies, voluntary organisations and our independent advisory group - to meet three key objectives: preventing hate crime happening by challenging the attitudes and behaviours that foster hatred, and encouraging early intervention to reduce the risk of incidents escalating increasing the reporting of hate crime that occurs by building victims confidence to come forward and seek justice, and working with partners at national and local level to ensure the right support is available when they do working with the agencies that make up the Criminal Justice System to improve the operational response to hate crime. We want a more effective end-to-end process, with agencies identifying hate crimes early, managing cases jointly and dealing with offenders robustly

In the Ministerial Foreword of the report, Lynne Featherstone, Minister for Equality states: All crime is wrong, but that which is motivated by a particular characteristic of the victim - whether its their race, faith, sexual orientation, gender identity, perceived disability or anything else is particularly corrosive. Tackling hate crime matters, not just because of the devastating consequences it can have for victims and their families, but also because it can divide communities. You can read Lynne Featherstones full speech from the launch of Challenge it, report it, stop it on the Home Office website: Lynne
April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 17 of 19

national news
Featherstone speech on hate crime. Our members will be aware of ecdps work with members, examining disability hate crime in Essex. This work found that there were four key areas to address in order to tackle disability hate crime, forming the USER model: Understanding there needs to be a greater understanding of disability hate crime Signposting and Support services which signpost and support disabled people when they are victims of hate crime should be widely available and well coordinated Education to ensure wider change for disabled people, we believe education work should be focused on three particular groups of stakeholders: disabled people themselves, professionals and wider society. Reporting we believe stronger processes for reporting will increase the number of investigated and prosecuted cases. ecdps welcomes many aspects of the Governments approach outlined in the blueprint, broadly reflecting many of the changes ecdp called for within this model: We agree that a local approach to tackling hate crime in communities, based on the lived experience of those within in them, is the right one. Indeed as Disabled Peoples User-Led Organisation (DPULO), ecdp believe we are well placed to work with our members to understand and utilise their lived experience to address disability hate crime, working with key partners including the Police and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). It is good to see the report reference the important role DPULOs have in addressing disability hate crime. Many of the professionals with responsibility for dealing with hate crime told ecdp that there was not an adequate understanding of disability hate crime. The first action in the blueprint aims to increase understanding of hate crime through analysis of existing data, such as that collected by the British Crime Survey.
April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 18 of 19

national news

Our members strongly called for an approach which prevents hate crime by challenging negative attitudes about disabled people through education. During the Fulfilling Potential discussion our members also told us they hoped to see the Paralympics used to improve attitudes towards disabled people longer term. This is also recognised in the action plan. Given the constructive and varied suggestions for improving the lives of disabled people - including through changing attitudes and behaviours - our members and many other disabled people across the country made during the Governments Fulfilling Potential discussion, it is good to see that the resulting Disability Strategy and actions to be taken, will also inform work around disability hate crime. The report recognises disabled people as one of the groups who are least likely to report hate crime when it affects them and aims to improve reporting for all victims through better partnership working (joining up signposting and support) and building confidence.

April 2012: Monthly Update 35 Page 19 of 19